Her Price to Pay
by AuroraAustralice
Summary: The War is over; The Dark had won and Hermione managed to escape with a year old Teddy Lupin; two years later while hiding they are caught and brought to the Malfoy Manor where Draco Malfoy Voldemort's most trusted commander must keep them alive but everyone has secrets, Hermione is dying and what about Draco? What secrets does he hide? )
1. Prologue

_**Before we begin with this story, I would like to impress upon you that this story contains strong language and very mature themes like rape and death, it is meant to be a painful story and this is a little preview of what is to come so please if you don't like these sorts of stories I implore you to leave now. **_

_**Her Price to Pay **_

"Shhh, Teddy." Whispered Hermione, hoarsely, "You must keep silent, alright." She said as she pulled the three year old child closer and tried to wedge herself deeper into the little dark niche they were hiding in. The child already knew the routine, and was completely mum when they heard the marching of Death- Eater patrols outside the door of the ramshackle hut they were living in.

It had been two years since the War, two years since Voldemort killed everything and everyone she had ever loved. Hermione had barely managed to rescue Teddy from his burning home before running towards Australia only to find her parent's throats slit and a gruesome message on the wall, they were coming for her. Hermione had managed to evade them but slowly the resources were running out and she had a small child to care for, at first the magic in her wand was cut of making it useless, the core of dragon heartstring had withered away; after that she had fallen ill and she knew her time was running out, the deep chesty pains were growing more frequent, her mouth was tasted like blood after she coughed, moments of frequent blackouts and blindness were getting closer together. Teddy had survived; though his body was thin it wasn't skeletal with starvation unlike Hermione's own sunken eyes and thin shaking hands.

Voldemort had killed Harry, the Order had been brutally exterminated and whoever had survived had either fled or was locked away in Hogwarts with no way to escape. Hermione had seen the muggleborn quarters in London, the filthy, decrepit streets filled with shit and blood. Bodies just lying about, bodies of those who couldn't continue any longer; those too old or too young or too ill, Hermione had seen powerful ministers and officials wearing rags and eating whatever they could salvage from the dumpsters and sewers, their grey skin and chapped lips caked with grime and their sunken eyes speaking of hope lost. She had wanted to help but what could she have done, her own body was shrunken beyond recognition, her hands shook, her magic was spent… her illness had made her weak, half dead only the thought of keeping Teddy alive kept her going. They ate whenever they could, stolen food or food salvaged from muggle dumpsters as they kept moving to avoid the Death-Eaters.

Hermione tried unsuccessfully to muffle a painful cough hoping beyond hope that the patrol had already passed them by. Now no place in England was safe and she couldn't travel any place else.

"Shhh Hermy." Whispered Teddy in his baby voice, "Bad men outside."

"I know, baby… I'm so sorry." She reassured him. "I'll try to be more quite."

Hermione didn't believe in God, she never had but at that moment she prayed, she prayed with all her heart; begging and pleading God to keep them safe. Anything… she thought in a fevered trance, I'll do anything to keep Teddy safe, please-please let us live, she could feel the young boy's firm little body pressing into hers and she clung to his comforting warmth, Teddy's own hands tightened around Hermione's neck keeping his face buried in her throat, she kissed the back of his head waiting for signs of life to resume outside… the deafening silence was the most prominent indicator of Death-Eater activity.

Finally the silence broke and a faint rustling of life outside the broken down shack could be heard, birds were calling to each other once again and the sounds of life resumed, Hermione let herself relax before a bout of coughing shook her entire body. "I'm going to be fine." She reassured the troubled child, "Don't worry, I'll always take care of you… always."

"Promise?" said the little boy staring at her intently.

"I promise." She whispered back equally intense.

"I love you." he whispered to her.

"I love you more." She sighed holding his thin body close.

"Well-well, what a touching scene." Drawled a familiar voice slowly, "We've been looking for you for a long time, Miss Granger."

Hermione panicked, she tried to apprated with Teddy but the sickness in her body was sapping her energy. "Please…" she whispered, "I don't want any trouble, please leave us alone."

"You know I can't do that, mudblood." Came the deceptively soft voice of Rookwood who had been standing inside the hut all the while, silent and concealed.

Hermione looked at him wildly, "I'll go, without a fuss… just please let the child go. He is only three!"

"The werewolf brat." Scoffed Rookwood coldly, "That abomination doesn't deserve to be called human."

"Don't you have a child of your own!?" she cried, "You want me, take me… just please, let him go…please." She said desperately, her voice breaking and a bout of painful, hacking coughs spewing blood on the filthy floor.

"Mudblood cunt." Snarled the dark haired Death-Eater, "You've dirtied my robe." He aimed a kick at her that landed on her ribs, making her fall backwards; her arm still thrown out in front of Teddy to protect him.

"Leave her alone!" cried the little boy, flinging himself in front of Hermione.

"Fucking brat." Growled Rookwood advancing towards the small child, the intent clear in his eyes, "I'll murder you like I did your filthy half breed parent's."

Hermione dragged herself up, pushing the child behind her, "Run Teddy, when I tell you to run you run, understood?" she whispered.

"No!" screamed the child, "No Hermione!"

"If either of you move, the rest of the Death-Eaters outside won't be as forgiving as me." Drawled Rookwood, spitting on Hermione.

Teddy was bristling with rage, his little hands shook at his side as he saw Rookwood degrade Hermione like a squib… one of the most powerful witches unable to escape the clutches of a third rate sadist.

"What are you going to do to me!?" she screamed, "Will you rape me? Kill me? What!? Go ahead, I'm almost dead anyway. What this illness is doing to me is far worse than anything you could ever do to me with your tiny prick." She spat.

Rookwood reached for her, his large meaty hands covering her small breasts, "You'll be sorry you ever said that." He said with a cruel smile, "I'll make you cry, you little bitch. I'll make your cunt bleed and that pretty mouth scream."

"Don't touch her!" cried the child, flinging himself forward, "DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!" he bit and scratched, kicking the older man with all his might.

"NO TEDDY!" cried Hermione, her weak body reaching for him… trying to defend him, "RUN! GO! PLEASE!" she cried, her breath rasping out and her body heaving with the exertion.

Just as Rookwood was raising his wand to hurt the child the door of the shack slammed open.

"What the fuck his happening here?" snarled a low voice and Hermione's last coherent thought was that maybe someone would finally have pity on them.

…

**Tell me what you think, leave me lovely reviews **


	2. I

_**What Were We to Darkness **_

I was accustomed to the bleak semi-darkness of the Manor, with my attraction to the shadow world I have always preferred winters. People rushing home in their black robes through the darkening streets, but I feel an overwhelming sadness when I look at old buildings and the dark surfaces of neglected unpainted, fallen down homes where people once lived, it is for the first time I have seen this color come to life…

I see the dark crowds rush homeward, with their heads bent in perhaps fear or maybe in happiness, I feel like the night is one with us… it helps cloak our worlds, our belongings in a blanket of darkness as if once we are safe in our homes we can once again return to the dreams of our long lost riches, our past legends of gods and monsters, our dreams of chivalry and valor.

I watch the darkness descend over the bodies of homeless muggleborns and their broken bodies, it comforts me for some strange reason to see their despair hidden from prying eyes. I watch men and women pull the cape of night behind their lengthening shadows. I walk alone my own shadow blending in with those of other men and I wish I lived in a world where grey was not so black and white was not so grey.

But who am I to complain, I am one of those thieves who has slowly stolen the color from this world, leeching it out with my actions. I have turned my world grey by spilling red but I am too much of a coward to face the thought of colors returning again. For every color is an emotion and I am now used to a world without emotion for only death is grey and white and now I am used to death.

It is my worst nightmare to see all the colors rushing, bleeding into a wild spectrum, proceeding to stain my soul. A deep, luminous jade of calm or perhaps a scarlet of lust or perhaps a cerulean of strength, no I cannot fathom these colors and I try but in my worst nightmares they choke me, surrounding me head to toe in a million hues, covering my matte grey body in suffocating colors. I cannot survive these emotions… not with what I have done. Not with what I have become.

I am a beast though my scars do not show on my countenance they are riddled upon my soul, pockmarked, red and raw.

I was there when we caught _her _and I wanted her dead. She was the single living soul who I feared and now she was here, close enough for me to destroy her and yet I couldn't.

Hermione Granger, the warrior.

….

Draco Malfoy had changed, it was there in the way he held himself; the kind of dark, dangerous energy that crackled surrounded him like an impenetrable shield. His face was stoic and his body still but his eyes flamed with…fear? For her, of her?

"She is my prisoner." He said quietly, his low voice stilling the restless herd of Death-Eaters all braying for her blood. "Tie her and the boy up, I will see to it that they are delivered to the Dark Lord." He said as he turned his back to her and walked away.

Hermione had never seen more animate eyes, unconsciously she wondered what was going on in that mind and how he had managed to tame it in a manner that it showed nowhere but within the deepest recesses of his mind. Even though she had seen him just seconds ago it was hard for Hermione to recall anything but his strange eyes that skewed into her, the rest of him was blurry. Like a reflection on water, his edges softened by the mundane, shadows blurring over her eyes in an effort to make her forget him.

He was fading; she thought… her mind fuzzed with unclear thoughts. He was fading into matte black.

…..

**I have exams coming, so I'm sorry for the short update I plan to reveal how the whole war happened in the next chapter but this was just a little Draco and some Hermione. Unfortunately real life demands are too pressing. **


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